Taiwan's Hsu, Yang take silver at Pair-Go tournament in Japan

Nagoya, Japan, Sept. 27 (CNA) Taiwanese Go players Hsu Hao-hung (許皓鋐), a 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games gold medalist, and Yang Tzu-hsuan (楊子萱), a two-time Synmosa Cup Woman Ace Player Tournament champion, finished second at World Pair Go Championship 2026 in Nagoya on Sunday.

Hsu, a ninth-dan player, and Yang, who holds a sixth-dan rank, lost in the final to Japan's ninth-dan Ryo Ichiriki and seventh-dan Rina Fujisawa, who clinched gold.

The tournament was held inside the Hommaru Palace at the historical Nagoya Castle.

The Taiwanese duo reached Sunday's final after defeating South Korea's Shin Min Jun and Kim Eun Ji on Saturday, then defeating China's Wang Xinghao (王星昊) and Yu Zhiying (於之瑩) in the semifinals later that day.

In the final, the Taiwanese pair played with the black stones and the Japanese pair with the white stones.

Under Pair-Go rules, players alternate turns in a fixed order, beginning with the woman playing black, followed by the woman playing white, then the man playing black and the man playing white.

The Japanese pair gained the upper hand early, and although Hsu and Yang tried to turn the match around, Ichiriki and Fujisawa went on to win the 5 million yen (US$31,798) top prize.

Hsu and Yang received 2 million yen for finishing second.

Speaking to CNA through Taiwan's HaiFong Go Association, Hsu said a move by Yang at a crucial moment in the final helped set up his next move.

His comment highlighted the pair's camaraderie and the importance of coordination in Pair-Go, where partners are generally prohibited from speaking to each other except to confirm the order of play or ask their partner's permission to resign.

Players are also barred from using body language or facial expressions to communicate strategy, so each partner must read the board and infer the other's intentions.

Hsu said he and Yang had little time to practice together before the tournament, but their coordination improved as the competition progressed from Friday through Sunday.

Yang said she was nervous during their opening match Friday, which they lost to Shin and Kim, but gained confidence after winning their second game against China's Ding Hao (丁浩) and Zhou Hongyu (周泓余).

She said she was grateful for the patience of the higher-ranking Hsu and hoped to partner with him again in the future.

The World Pair Go Championship 2026 was the main professional event of the Pair Go World Festival 2026.

In addition to the professional matches at Nagoya Castle, the festival featured amateur competitions and exhibition games at other venues.

The professional tournament featured 16 professional players on eight teams: one from Taiwan, two from South Korea, two from China and three from Japan.